Escapement mechanism.



J, F. MAYS.

ESCAPEMENT MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12, 1914.

Patented Dec. 21, 1915.

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COLUMBIA PLANOGRAI'H co.. WASHINGTON, D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT @FFEQFJ.

JAMES F. MAYS, OF BIRMINGHAM, ALABAIVIA, ASSIGNOR. TO IIIAYS ACCOUNTING MACHINE COMPANY, OF ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA, A CORPUBATION OF NEVADA.

ESCAPEMENT MECHANISM.

Application filed November 12, 1914.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JAMES F. MAYS, a citiZen of the United States, residing at Birmingham, in the county of Jefferson and State of Alabama, have invented certain neW and useful Improvements in Escapement Mechanisms, of which the following is a specification.

The mechanism constituting the subject of this invention was devised primarily to serve as a carrying mechanism for adding or calculating machines, though it is not limited to such use.

The function of such mechanism in adding or calculating machines of the dial registering type is to transmit one rotary step to a dial or dial shaft, upon the rotation of the dial or shaft of the next lower denomination a predetermined amount, as, for example, to impart one rotary step to the tens dial when the extent of the rotation of the units dial is greater than nine tenths of a revolution. The idea of performing this operation by escapement mechanism is not broadly new; that is to say, it is old to hold the tens dial against rotation under the tension of a spring, and when the units shaft has rotated a given amount, to automatically release the tens dial and allow it to rotate one step and thereby carry one. o

The primary object of my present invention is to simplify and improve such mechanism, and this I do in one way by the mechanism which I shall now describe in detail, the same being illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein,

Figure 1, is a top plan view of said mechanism; Fig. 2, a vertical section taken on the line 2* X Fig. l, and looking in the direction of the arrow adjacent said line; Fig. 3, a vertical section taken on line 3 -3 Fig. 2, and looking toward the left in said figure; Fig. 4, a detail vertical section on line t*1" Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow adjacent that line; Fig. 5, a vertical section taken on line 2 2 Fig. 1, looking in the opposite direction to that indicated by the arrow adjacent that line; Fig. 6, a horizontal section taken on line 6"6 Fig. 3, looking down, and Fig. 7, a view showing in side elevation the two pallet actuating cams.

In the accompanying drawings 1 and 2 represent two shafts journaled for rotation Specification of Letters Patent.

. clearly in Fig. 2.

Patented Rec. 21,1915.

Serial No. 871,758.

on their longitudinal axes in two suitable supports 3 and 4. F or the purposes of illustration, we may assume that the shaft 1 is the units dial shaft, and the shaft 2 the tens dial shaft of an adding or calculating machine, the said shafts having mounted fast thereon units and tens registering dials 5 and 6 respectively.

Mounted fast on shaft 1, between supports 3 and l, is a sleeve 7 carrying two pinions 8 and 9 fast thereon. Pinion 8 meshes with a gear 10 beneath it, and this gear is fast upon a sleeve 11 rotatably mounted upon a shoulder screw 12 screwed into support 3. Also fast on sleeve 11 are two cams 13 and 14, each having one drop, the two being angularly disposed with reference to their axis of rotation so that the drops are 180 apart. The function of these cams is to operate two similar bell crank levers 15 and 16 respectively, each having an up wardly extending arm provided with offset extensions 17, 18, respectively, resting against the peripheries of cams 13 and 1d under the tension of individual springs 18-. Only one of these springs is shown, but the two are exactly alike, so that it is not considered necessary to add another view to show them both. The other arms of these levers 15 and 16 carrying pivotally mounted thereon for angular movement in a vertical plane two pallets 19 and 20 respectively, the said movement of said pallets being limited respectively by offsets 21, 22 on an upright extension of lever 15, and offset 23, 24 on an upright extension of lever 16, and at all times under tension in the direction of stop 22 and 2d, of individual coil springs 19 and 20. Levers 15 and 16 are both mounted upon a shoulder screw 25 as a pivot, said screw being carried by a downward extension 26 of support 3.

Pallets 19 and 20 terminate at their upper ends respectively in noses which extend into the path of rotation of a series of equally spaced lugs or right angle offsets 27 integral with or otherwise fast on a disk 28 mounted for rotation on a sleeve 29 through which shaft 2 extends and in which it rotates. The noses of pallets 19 and 20 extend into the path of rotation of lugs 27 on opposite sides of them, as shown most Disk 28 is yieldabiy connected through a coil spring 30 to a gear 31 also mounted for rotation on sleeve 29,

said spring being fast at one end to a pin 32 carried by disk 28 and fast at its other end to a pin 88 carried by gear 31. Gear 81 is driven from shaft 1 through a train of gearing including a pinion 3a meshing with gear 31, and a gear 35 fast to pinion 3 1 and meshing with pinion 9.

Shaft 2 may rotate in one direction (clockwise as shown in Fig. 2) independently of disk 28 and gear 31, but when this disk is rotated in a clockwise direction, it imparts rotation to shaft 2 through ratchet 36 fast to said shaft, and spring pawl 37 mounted on said disk. Pinion 8 and gear 10 are so relatively proportioned that one revolution of shaft 1 imparts one-half a revolution to cams 13 and 14:. Pinion 9 is so geared to gear 31 that for each complete revolution of shaft 1, gear 31 makes onetenth of a revolution.

The operation is as follows: During a period of the rotation of shaft 1 in a clockwise direction Fig. 2, it imparts rotation to gear 31 in a similar direction, during which time, except as hereinafter noted, disk 28 is held from rotation by the nose of one of the stop pallets 19, 20 extending into the path of lugs 27. The relative angular displacement thus elfected between this disk and gear acts to extend spring 30. As soon,

however, as the drop of either cam 13 or 14 passes the upper end of its lever 15 or 16 hearing thereagainst, the said lever will be quickly turned on its pivotal support, sending its horizontal arm downward and retracting the nose of its pallet 19 or 20 as the case may be from the path of lugs 27. Immediately that this happens, disk 31 is released and is instantly rotated by the spring 30. Such rotation, however, will be stopped by the next lug 27 engaging the nose of the other lever whose upright arm is still upon the elevated portion of its cam. There are ten stops or lugs 27 in the case here shown, equally spaced so that for each complete revolution of shaft 1, shaft 2 will be rotated one-tenth of a revolution. A. positive stop to disk 28 is afforded on each step by the stop pallet 19 or 20, as the case may be, being forced against its rigid stop 21 or 23. Immediately after either of the pallets 19 or 20 is drawn down out of the path of lugs 27, it is drawn quickly to the right (Fig. 2) under the tension of its spring 19 or 20*,

and as the cam controlling that pallet continues its rotation, it will cause the nose of said pallet to rise again to the position indicated by the nose of pallet 19 in 2. In this way, the noses of said pallet are alternately sent into position to stop the disk 28 and release it. When one stop releases the disk, the other catches and stops it, and vice versa. 7

It will be seen that each complete step of shaft 1, when operated by the escapement,

involves but one step of escapement member 28; in other words, escapement member 28 travels by continuous motion in making each complete step. This is a decided advantage in escapement mechanisms which have to operateat high speed, as in calculating machines. It will also be seen that the mechanism here provided is extremely simple and therefore not so likely to get out of order as the more complicated mechanisms for accomplishing the same final result.

The reason for having the shaft 2 rotatable independently of the escapement, as well as rotatable thereby when the mechanism is applied to a calculating machine, is to allow said shaft to be operated from the keys of the same denomination as the dial operated by said shaft, as distinguished from the operation of said shaft in carrying from a dial of a lower to one of a higher denomination.

\Vhile I have herein shown and described one specific embodiment of my said invention, it should be understood that the same is susceptible to change without departing from the spirit of the invention.

lVhat I claim is:

1. In mechanism of the class described, the combination with a rotatable shaft, of a rotatable escape member having a plurality of stops and connected to said shaft to ro-V tate the same, means to rotate said escape member, a pair of pallets, a second rotatable shaft, and means operable by said second mentioned shaft to move said pallets one at a time into the path of said stops to arrest the movement of said escape member and to remove them one at a time from said path to release said escape member, said pallet operating means acting to move one of said pallets into the path of said stops while the said escape member is being held against rotation by the other of said pallets, whereby the pallet thus moved into the path of said stops engages the next succeeding stopv to the one being engaged by the other pallet, after the release of said escape member.

2. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination with a rotatable shaft, of a rotatable member provided with a plurality of stops spaced around its axis of rotation, driving connection between said member and shaft, a member rotatable relatively to said stop carrying member, a spring connecting said members and arranged to be placed under tension by relative angular movement between the two, a second rotata ble shaft operatively connected to said second mentioned rotatable member to rotate the same for tensioning said spring, a pair of pallets adapted to be engaged by said stops and yieldable under the action thereof to a limited extent, means operated by the of; said stops to limit the angular movement of said stop carrying member under the action of said spring and to withdraw sai'd pallets alternatelyfrom said path, said pallets being projected into the path of said stops on opposite sides of one of said stops at a time, the, pallet on one side of said stop acting to hold said stop-carryingmem'ber against rotation by said spring until said pallet is withdrawn from the path of said stops, and the other pallet adapted to catch the next succeeding stop, and arrest the movement of said stop carrying member when released.

3. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination with a rotatable shaft, of a disk rotatable about the longitudinal axis of said shaft and provided with a plurality of stops spaced around said axis, driving connection between said disk and shaft, a spring to rotate said disk in a direction to rotate said shaft, a second rotatable shaft, means operated by second mentioned shaft to place said spring under tension tending to rotate said disk, a pair of pivoted pallets, means exerting tension on both said pallets in the same direction about their pivots, stops arranged to limit the movement of said pallets about their pivots in two directions, and mechanism for alternately projecting said pallets into the path of said stops on said disk and withdrawing said pallets alternately from said path, said pallets when projected into said path lying on opposite sides of one of saidstops, the pallet on one side of said stop acting to hold said disk against rotation by said spring and to subsequently release it, and the other pallet adapted to catch the next succeeding disk stop upon the release of said disk by the withdrawal of the pallet engaging the preceding disk stop.

at. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination with a rotatable shaft, of a member rotatable about the longitudinal axis of said shaft and provided with a plurality of stops spaced around said axis, driving connection between said member and shaft, a member rotatable about the axis of said shaft relatively to said stop carrying member, a spring connecting said members and arranged to be placed under tension by relative angular movement between the two,

a second rotatable shaft operatively connected to said second mentioned member to rotate the same to tension said spring, a pair of pallets adapted to be engaged by said stops and yieldable under the action thereof, a stop adapted to limit such yielding movement of each pallet, and cam controlled means operable from the second mentioned shaft to project said pallets alternately into the path of said stops to limit the angular movement of said stop carrying member under the action of said spring and to Withdraw said pallets alternately from said path,

the movement of each pallet into the path of said stops taking place during the relative and arranged to be placed under tension by relative angular movement between the two, a second rotatable shaft and gearing connecting the same with the second mentioned rotatable member, a pair of cams having drops staggered around their axes of rotation with respect to each other and connected to said second mentioned shaft to be rotated thereby, a pair of levers each having an arm resting on the periphery of one of said cams, a pivoted stop pallet carried by each of said levers, stops carried by said levers arranged to limit the angular movement of said pallets in two directions, a spring for each of said pallets holding them both under tension in the same direction, said cams rocking said levers to alternately project said pallets into and withdraw them from the path of said rotary stop lugs.

6. In a mechanism of the class described, the combination with a rotatable shaft, of a disk rotatable about the longitudinal axis of said shaft and provided with a plurality of rigid stop lugs equally spaced around said axis, a ratchet and pawl driving connection between said disk and said shaft, a gear rotatable about the axis of said shaft relatively to said disk, a spring connected to said disk and to said gear and arranged to be placed under tension by relative angular movement between the two, a second rotatable shaft, gearing connecting said gear with the second mentioned shaft whereby the rotation of the latter places said spring under tension, a pair of cams having drops staggered around their axes of rotation approximately 180 from each other and geared to said second mentioned shaft to rotate at half the speed thereof, a pair of levers each having an arm resting on the periphery of one of said cams, tension means for holding said arms in engagement with said cams, a pivoted stop pallet carried by each of said levers, stops carried by said levers arranged to limit the angular movement of said pallets in two directions, a spring for each of said pallets holding them both under tension in the same direction, said cams rocking said levers to alternately project said pallets into and withdraw them from the path of said rotary stop lugs, said pallets when projected into said path, lying in opposite sides of one of other pallet. 1 I a -7. In a mechanism of the class described,

thecombination with a rotatable escapei ment member having a series of stops spaced 1'0 around the 'aXis of' rotation; of means to impart rotatlon to "said member; pallets mounted to yield in the direction of rotation of saidmember to a limited extent when struck by said stops, and mechanism to project 'a'n'dwithdraw said pallets alternately fromthe path'of said stops, both of said pallets being caused to lie in the path of said stops at the'sam'e time and on opposite sides of the same stop,wher'eby When one of'said pallets is Withdrawn from the pathof said stop, the'other' pallet will be engaged by the Copies of this patent maybe obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommissioner of.Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

